1 Thessalonians
4:13-18
Brothers,
we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve
like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose
again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen
asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are
still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not
precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from
heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the
trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who
are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore
encourage each other with these words.
Yesterday
my family gathered to say goodbye to Howard, my father-in-law. It was a
bittersweet time, as we connected with people we had not seen in 30 years.
There were many stories about Howard. There was laughter and tears. Howard was
82 and had lived a full life. It was a hard day and a good day.
Today,
we will gather to say goodbye to Eric, a young man from our church. It will be
a hard day. There will be many tears and I hope some laughter as well. People
will share stories about Eric, and seek to comfort his family. From our
perspective, Eric’s life was cut short. He was only 43.
The
circumstances of these two deaths are very different. Howard’s death was sudden
and unanticipated. Eric had battled cancer for almost two years. Even though
the events leading to their deaths were very different, there is one reality that
binds them together. The end of the story is not the end of the story. Both
Howard and Eric were believers in Jesus Christ. They both lived an active
faith. And they both are now at home with the Lord, experiencing their eternal
reward.
Paul
tells us that we can face these experiences with a hope that transcends our
grief and pain. For many people, death is a dark curtain that hides the future.
They are afraid that, when that curtain is parted, there will be nothing on the
other side. But those of us who have put our faith in Jesus Christ have a
different perspective. The end of our life here on earth is not the end of our
life.
When
Jesus went to the funeral of Lazarus, he gave Martha words of hope to hold
onto. Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who
believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in
me will never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:25-26) What we think
of as the end of the story is not the end of the story.
As
Jesus was preparing his disciples for his own death, he gave them words of hope
and assurance. "Do not let your
hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are
many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to
prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come
back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” (John
14:1-3)
I do
not know what it will be like when I walk through the curtain of death. I cannot truly imagine what it means to be in
the Lord’s presence. But there are a few things that I hold onto as I face the
reality of death.
- When the time comes, Jesus will be there to walk with
me through that curtain.
- When the time comes, my earthly body will be
transformed into a heavenly body.
- When that time comes, I will be reunited with those who
have gone before me.
- When that time comes, it will all make sense.
Until
that time, we live in the hope of the resurrection and rest in the unfailing
promises of God. Because, the end of our story on earth is not the end of our
story, when we know the end of the story.
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